Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-01-07

Senate Hamilton read the following from the
Political Code:
Section 1896 The returns of election for
Governor and Northumberland must during
the first week of the session be opened, can
vassed, and the result declared by the Speaker
of the Assembly in presence of both houses
=" Section 1897. No declaration of the result,
commission or certificate must be withheld on
account of any defect or infOrmality i'll the re-
turn of any election, if it can with reasonable
certainty be ascertained from such return what
office is intended, and who is elected thereto.
| Lieutenant Governor Daggett appointed as
| tellers Senators Bo2gs and Wilson. Speaker
Jordan appointed as tellers Assemblymen lie
Blanc and Lewis The tellers took their place
at the Clerks desk and the Speaker commenced
the canvas of the vote by counties After the
| returns in the Speakers hands were all can
vased 1t was ascertained that MERGED county
| had returned the vote on Governor but not that
on ACKNOWLEDGMENT while there were no
! returns from San Mateo and San Benito coun-
! ties. This was an unexpected revelation and
caused no little excitement, especially among
| the Democratic members.
| On motion OF Senator White a committee of
| three was appointed to visit the Secretary OF
| State and ascertain If he knew anything about
| the missing returns The Speaker named as
such committee Senators White and Haynes
and Assemblyman Heath.
During the absence of the committee the
members from the three counties were ques-
toned regarding the missing returns but they
| could not throw any light upon the subject. 1t
appeared to be clear case of negligence ON the
part OF the County Clerks.
The committee, after an absence of some ten
minutes, returned. and reported that they had
visited the office of the Secretary of State, but
were unable to find the returns. They had Sc
cured, however, the official abstracts from
which the Secretary of State had made the OH
cial canvass, and Senator White moved that
they be used in the absence of the returns
Mr. Vrooman-I raise the point of order that
the statute provides specifically what shall be
the return to be considered by this Convention,
and it cannot go outside of the statute i'll its de-
termination, but must be guided by the specified
intent OF the statute of the State under which
this Convention is called together. Assembly
man Variel has the statute before him and ask
him to read it.
Assemblyman yariel-I would call the
Speakers attention to Section 4, of Article ",
of the Constitution of this State. Reads The
returns of every election for Governor shall be
sealed up and transmitted TO the seat of govern
ment, directed to the Speaker of the Assembly,
who shall, during the first week of the session,
open and publish them in the presence of both
houses of the Legislature. The person having
the highest number OF votes shall be Governor;
but in case any two or more have an equal and
the highest number of votes, the Legislature
shall, by joint vote of both houses, choose one
of such persons so having an equal and the
highest number of votes for Governor"
The first three lines of the section contains
the point and sustains the objection urged by
Senator Vrooman. The statutes, Sections 1892,
| 1898, 1894 and 1895, are as follows: When an
election has been held to fill the Office of Gov
ernor or Lieutenant-Goyernor, the Clerk of each
county, in addition to the abstract made for
| transmission to the Secretary of State, must, as
| soon as the statement of the vote of his
the records of the Board of Super
visors, make two certified abstracts of so
much thereof as related to the vote given for
such officers. The Clerk must seal up each alb
stract separately. and indorse thereon, "Elec-
ton returns for Governor and Lieutenant Gov
ernor." He must at once direct one copy to
the Speaker OF the Assembly next to meet, y
| address it to Sacramento California, and deposit
it. oSt-paid, in the postoffice. he other copy
he must direct and address in the same man
ner, and at once deliver it to a member-elect of
the Legislature or to a Senator who holds over;
and the person to whom it is so delivered must
deliver it to the Speaker or before the
second day next after his election.
From those sections and the constitutional
section | must concur with Senator Vrooman
that whatever evidence comes in here found in
the Secretary of States office is incompetent as
| evidence of what may have been the vote for
Governor and Lieutenant-Goyernor, and the
| only proper evidence is the returns from those
C )unties and competent evidence OF the votes
! for those officers
| Senator White could not see why any Office
| ton should be urged against the documents of
| fered. and which were found i'll the Secretary of
States Office being certified returns from the sew
| eral County Clerks. 1t would be evidence before
the Courts, as it was expressed as evidence upon
the books kept by these gentlemen as required
by law. If any Clerk should, from any cause, re-
| fuse positively to forward to the Speaker of the
Assembly during the first week the returns
which by law he is required to forward, the re-
| suit would be person elected by the people
would not be declared elected, and 50 say this
being merely a matter of procedure. and the
person elected to perform that duty fails so to do,
should the person elected be deprived
of the office? Therefore, can not we
make up the deficiency on account
of that dereliction of duty, these docu-
ments being a certified copy of the record
which is Il result of the count returned by the
Board of Supervisors? The statement you have
read, Mr.. Speaker, is a general statement that
so and so received so many votes.
The Chair--I will correct the gentleman. 1t
is not made out by precincts and districts.
Mr. WHITEHALL we desire to find out is the
vote cast and these documents l have offered
are official records 1t does not follow that the
best evidence shall always be given before any
tribunal, but the best evidence that can be
made. We make the best proof that can be
made under The circumstances. as in this in
stance the Clerks failed to do their duty, and
present it, and cannot see why any person
should object to it.
Assembiyman Briefly said he was DESTROYS to
act in the manner suggested by Senator White
but having visited the Senate at the discussion
had in respect to pages and porters. and thereby
learning what the law was could not support
the gentleman ideas.
Mr. Knox argued that should the Convention
90 on and adopt the means suggested by Sena-
tor White and this Legislature should go on
question he raised regarding this very matter the
Courts might declare the election ofGovernor and
Lieutenant Governor unconstitutional, and then
the entire work OF this session would be null
and void. He said he was as DESTROYS as the Sena
tor from Los angeles to proceed as rapidly as
possible with the count, but under the provi-
sions of the Constitution he could not consist
emily vote with him. Because tie provision of
the Constitution limited the duty OF the Speaker
of the Assembly 10 simply question of returns
transmitted to him, and only mis- duty to declare
the result from these returns, and was willing
TO adjourn from day to day until such returns
were made.
Mr.. Brooks desired to know what effect it
would have if tie result would be declared
upon the returns so lar canyassed, as to any
change that might be made.
s. nator White thought il would make no diff
ference the result could not be changed and it
would be better, he thought, to omit them alto
gether, because if the matter was deferred it
would take a weeks time to get the returns.
MIR. Granger concurred with Senator White,
and thought the motion in order as the section
OF the Constitution referred TO suggested that
the returns OF every election for Governor shall
be sealed and be transmitted TO the Speaker, etc.
All that the Speaker has to do is to open the re-
turns which he has received and publish them
to the Legislature in joint session, and the Leg
islatUre itself has the wnoie business of de-
termining the result, and thought it was in
the power of the joint convention
now to determine the result upon principles of
equity and law, because if any officer has neg
lected his duty and all returns are not in as
contemplated the Constitution, then il is in
the power of this joint convention 10 determine
how they will proceed TO rid themselves of this
defect He held that the Convention had the
power by its majority, to determine how they
should proceed.
raised by the Senator from Alameda well taken,
as the Cons, tuition left no room for debate. He
argued that the best way out of the difficulty
was for the Speaker 10 hold to the rule as laid
doRn; that his duty was limited to count of
the returns before him If it should happen to
change the result then ia good faith to the peo-
pie OF the State this question should be con-
tinued from day to day until such time us the
returns could be received.
Mr. Taylor held to the same proposition, and
tnat the Convention had no power to control
the matter, bot must abide by the testimony as
prescribed by the law and Constitution.
Mr.. Young asked if the records of San Benito
county have been destroyed by fire what would
be the evidence required in that case. He
thought the Secretary OF state could In a matter
of this kind supply the wanting link.
Mr. Granger argued that the Convention was
placed in the same position as the Congress OF
The United States was in 1877, growing out ofthe
election of President in 1876 There the Presi-
dent of the Senate claimed from the returns the
power to declare from the returns what the re-
suit was ard concluded from that that the
Assembly had the power to determine this ques-
ton ITSELF through the SPEAKER as It's mouth
MT Wright thought the objection over-tech-
meal and that the Convention should be gov
erned by the same rules of evidence as the
Courts.
Senator VroOman-I wish only to say word
in answer to the gentleman last upon the floor,
and to Senator White, as he appeared to base